Charlie was born on April 22, 1938 in Hoxie, Arkansas, the son of Charles & Notra (Long) Fender. The family later moved to Duncanville, Texas where he was raised and attended school, graduating from Duncanville High School with the class of 1956. He then attended college for a while until enlisting into the U.S. Air Force.

After the service Charlie worked for the Firestone Tire Company in Dallas, Texas for several years, transferring to a store in Spokane in the late 1960's where he worked as a department manager until his retirement in the early 1990's.

He was united in marriage to Mary Ann Vanderschel in Mount Vernon on December 5, 1992 and after her retirement they traveled the country extensively in their motorhome, spending winters in Arizona and summers in Mount Vernon.

Charlie was very computer savvy, building and maintaining web pages, working on computers and teaching computer classes. He also enjoyed a good old western movie and being around his friends and family. He loved his children and grandchildren and was devoted to all of them. Everyone says he was still a kid at heart.